Ashton Jeanty vs Rashee Rice

“I nearly clicked Zay Flowers with my second pick, and probably should have because he is in line for a huge 2026, but I instead grabbed my first running back in Ashton Jeanty, who should benefit from an upgraded offensive line and an offense-minded head coach in Klint Kubiak.”

“Ashton Jeanty (RB – LV) I could not have been more hyped for Ashton Jeanty heading into the 2025 season”

“With Klint Kubiak in town, Fernando Mendoza or Kirk Cousins at the helm, a healthy Brock Bowers , and improved blocking up front, Jeanty could be poised to post a strong RB1 season in his second season.”

“Ashton Jeanty had 100% of the backfield rushes from inside of the 5-yard line as a rookie, but he only had 9 rushes from that area of the field.”

“Ashton Jeanty will be seen as a disappointment for fantasy managers exiting his rookie season. It wasn’t a failure, but you can make the argument that, because of his talent and the hype, it didn’t live up to lofty expectations. Jeanty was the RB15 in fantasy points per game, finishing with 321 touches and 1,321 total yards.”

“Ashton Jeanty is entering his sophomore season with an improved situation. First and foremost, the Raiders hired Klint Kubiak as head coach, giving them one of the best play-callers in the NFL.”

“Last season, Jeanty was fifth in snap share at running back and first in backfield opportunity shares. If this usage continues, all we need is for the offense to take a step forward to have a huge season.”

“He now has a new head coach in Klint Kubiak, one of the rising offensive minds in the NFL. More importantly, the Raiders also bolstered the offensive line by adding All-Pro Tyler Linderbaum (BAL). If Jeanty was able to produce average numbers in a dysfunctional offense, he should be capable of producing above-average numbers in a functional one.”

“Ashton Jeanty may be the player I'm most excited to see on the field again. Jeanty was a can't-miss prospect who had a tumultuous first season. Despite the circumstances, Jeanty still finished as a high-end RB2, averaging 14 FPPG.”

“Ashton Jeanty will be seen as a disappointment for fantasy managers exiting his rookie season. The ecosystem surrounding Jeanty stunk. The Raiders were 31st in red zone scoring attempts per game and 30th in yards per play.”

“Last season, Ashton Jeanty eventually finished as the RB12, but he started slowly and, after the first three weeks, was the RB33.”

“Jeanty dealt with that contact fairly well, ranking 17th in yards after contact per attempt, and almost two-thirds of his 975 yards came after contact. Getting close to 1,000 yards in that environment is admirable, and with Tyler Linderbaum resetting the center market and left tackle Kolton Miller healthy, the Raiders will have enough pieces on this offensive line to be a marked upgrade.”

“Rashee Rice (WR – KC) Taking Rashee Rice here as my WR2 is much more comfortable than relying on him as my WR1”

“Furthermore, Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy have dealt with injuries in their careers, putting Allen one injury away from a starting role in a Patrick Mahomes-led offense”

“Rashee Rice faces a potential suspension, Cyrus Allen is dealing with a shin injury, and Xavier Worthy hurt his shoulder.”

“I had my eye on Bowers, but this felt like a spot to roll the dice on Rashee Rice. I know he’s had a plethora of off-field issues, but when he’s on the field, he’s constantly targeted. Last season, in limited time, Rice had a target share of about 30% while on the field.”

“20 come from two buckets: Hyper-specified role players (Stefon Diggs, Rashee Rice) Guys with other top 24 or strong ancillary target competition (Both Rams WRs, Jameson Williams, CeeDee Lamb, Tee Higgins, Quentin Johnston with Ladd McConkey/Keenan Allen) You may notice there’s one guy on this list who fits in neither, and it’s Thundering Herd legend Christian Watson (shout out to NDSU).”

“Rashee Rice (WR – KC) Rice is going 25th overall as the WR11, a price that reflects real excitement about his upside. His track record supports some of that: he ranked 11th in target share among receivers last year, fourth in targets per route run, and 10th in receiving yards per game, all despite playing only eight games.”

“Rice is a tricky player to grade. He's one of the league's most dynamic receivers, but off-field issues and repeated legal troubles have put his career in jeopardy.”

“Rice has been one of the best receivers in the league in terms of counting production when he has been available. From Week 7 to Week 15 last year, Rice averaged 6.6 receptions for 71.4 yards per game. Rice has been targeted on 30.4% of his routes over the past two seasons.”

“Rashee Rice is a bit of a gimmick wide receiver dependent on being force-fed low aDOT targets, with a 4.9-yard average depth of target that ranked 106th among 109 wideouts with at least 200 routes run in 2025. Beyond Rice's fantasy value being tied to low aDOT targets, he also has durability concerns after playing only eight games in 2025 and four in 2024, plus he earned his lowest PFF receiving grade in 2025 with the lowest yards per target (7.3) of his career.”

“When Rice was on the field, he had a target share of 37.9%. I believe Rice is a top-12 wide receiver in PPR formats.”

“When he's on the field, though, Rice smashes for fantasy managers. He's talented, but no one is going to mistake him for being a nuanced route-runner. Where he wins is underneath on manufactured touches.”

“Rice recently served a 30-day sentence for violating his probation and is rehabbing following a clean-up procedure on his knee. He was outstanding when on the field last year, averaging 18.8 PPR fantasy points per game, scoring over 23.1 in half the contests.”